“Adieu to Headquarters”: The Photographs of the 93rd New York, Part 1.

On the evening of August 1, the Army of the Potomac’s headquarters trudged into Bealton, a stopping point along the Orange and Alexandria Railroad located in Fauquier County. The next day, renowned photographer Timothy O’Sullivan stopped by to take images of the soldiers at rest. Specifically, he toured the bivouac of the 93^rd New York Volunteers, a headquarters guard regiment, which encamped at a dusty settlement called Germantown. One member of the 93^rd described Germantown as a village of “two houses,” lacking “society, and good water.”

Despite these poor accommodations, the soldiers of the 93^rd New York welcomed the photographer’s visit. Lieutenant Colonel Benjamin C. Butler called out nine of his ten companies (Company H was unavailable) and formed them up to have their pictures taken. Additionally, O’Sullivan took photographs of the company officers’ mess and the regimental field and staff. By the time he had finished, O’Sullivan had cataloged the regiment in a manner that had never been done for any other regiment attached to the Army of the Potomac. Nearly every member of the regiment had been captured on wet-plate, formally or informally.

It was an interesting moment for the 93^rd, considering the blood-letting in store for it. The 93^rd New York had been raised in the summer and autumn of 1861, but after two years of service, it had experienced a comparatively bloodless war. The regiment left Albany in March 1862 with 980 officers and men, but two months after reaching the front, it received an assignment to the Army of the Potomac’s headquarters guard. Although it was present for the Peninsula Campaign, Antietam, Fredericksburg, Chancellorsville, and Gettysburg, it had suffered miniscule losses because it stayed safely behind the lines, operating as the army’s provost.

In April 1864, while the 93^rd New York sat quietly at Brandy Station, Maj. Gen. George G. Meade reassigned it to front line duty. (Specifically, Meade wanted to replace the 93^rd New York with a regiment he liked, the 114^th Pennsylvania.) On April 21, First Lieutenant Waters Whipple Braman wrote to his fiancée, informing her of the sudden change. Eager for a chance to fight, Braman explained, “The 93^rd are at last B-r-i-g-a-d-e-d, and those beautiful colors so long borne, and so galliantly at Hdqrs, are at last to pay a maiden call upon the rebellious sons of our respected Uncle. . . . Adieu to Hdqrs, Wall Tents, ‘soft bread,’ extra baggage and the kindred luxuries. Come ‘Hard-tack’ and whatever hardships are connected with a soldiers life. I am ready for it, and willing to do my duty and if ever I do come out of this war (of which I have not a doubt) I mean to have it said that I ever did my duty.”

After the reassignment, the 93^rd New York’s chance to bleed for the Union came swiftly. As part of the 2^nd Brigade, 3^rd Division, 2^nd Corps, the 93^rd New York took a brutal beating at the Battle of the Wilderness. Over the course of two days, May 5 and 6, 1864, the regiment lost 260 officers and men. From May 8 to May 19, it lost another forty-five at Spotsylvania Court House. At North Anna and Totopotomoy, from May 22 to May 31, it lost another thirty-seven. Finally, at Cold Harbor, it lost another five.

The shockingly high losses in the 93^rd New York appalled Captain Braman, who had been promoted during the campaign and transferred to the staff of Maj. Gen. David B. Birney. “I do not wish to boast,” he wrote his fiancée, Maggie Getty, “but the loss of three hundred officers and men and they name they bear in this Division is sufficient praise. But what can compensate for the loss of friends, that we have marched, tented, messed, and lived with for over two years[?]”

 

What indeed.

What follows are images of the companies photographed by O’Sullivan on or about August 4, 1863.



This is Company A. The officers seated in front are (left to right) 1^st Lieutenant Joseph Little, Captain William Randles, and 2^nd Lieutenant Oscar B. Ingraham. At the end of the Overland Campaign, Company A reported thirteen killed and mortally wounded, twenty-nine wounded, and two missing. All three officers in this photograph were wounded.

This is Company B. The only officer in this image is 2^nd Lieutenant George Bushnell, who can be seen reclining at left-center. As of June 14, 1864, Company B reported five killed and twenty wounded, included Bushnell.

This is Company C. The officers seated in front are (left to right) 1^st Lieutenant Waters W. Braman, Captain Dennis Barnes, and 1^st Lieutenant Joseph Little (who actually belonged to Company A). On June 14, it reported five killed (including Captain Barnes) and twenty-eight wounded.

This is Company D. The two officers seated in front are Captain Henry P. Smith (left) and 1^st Lieutenant Silas Hubbell (right). On June 14, Company D reported five killed and twenty wounded.

This is Company E. The officers seated in front are (left to right) 1^st Lieutenant William Leggett Bramhall, Captain Henry C. Newton, and 2^nd Lieutenant John J. Sherwood. On June 14, the company reported six killed, thirty-six wounded (including all three officers), and two missing.

This is Company F. The officers seated in front are (left to right) Captain John Bailey, 1^st Lieutenant Silas Hubbell (of Company D) and 1^st Lieutenant William Kincaid. On June 14, it reported Captain Bailey killed, fourteen wounded (including Kincaid), and one missing.

This is Company G. The officers in front are Captain William V. S. Beekman (seated left), 1^st Lieutenant Francis Bailey (reclining center), and 2^nd Lieutenant Robert Liston Gray (seated right). On June 14, the company reported six killed (including Gray), thirteen wounded (including Beekman and Bailey), and three missing.

 

This is Company I. The officers in front are (left to right) Captain Nathan J. Johnson, 2^nd Lieutenant Jay H. Northup, and 1^st Lieutenant Norman Eldridge. On June 14, it reported four killed (including Eldridge), twenty-two wounded, and six missing.

 

This is Company K. The officers in front are (left to right) Captain Samuel McConihe, 1^st Lieutenant Robert  Robertson, and 2^nd Lieutenant William Ball. On June 14, it reported one killed, one mortally wounded, and twenty-seven wounded.

 

Lt. Waters Whipple Braman of the 93rd New York was eager to leave the headquarters guard, that is, until he fought at the Wilderness.